


Lost

by phantomhime



Category: Final Fantasy XII
Genre: Companionship, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-09
Updated: 2015-11-09
Packaged: 2018-04-30 21:12:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5179844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phantomhime/pseuds/phantomhime
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Sometimes, I wonder whether leaving was the right way."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lost

The village’s breeze was gentle but welcome, carrying a hint of relief from the thick humidity of the Wood. Even now as night had fallen, it was still warm, but more pleasantly so; unlike the sometimes cloyingly wet heat of the daytime. The trees were more sparse around the village, allowing the breeze to come through, carrying a refreshing touch of chill from the snowy mountain to the east. The temperature was perfect, and she had missed these nights intensely.

 

_”Sometimes, I wonder whether leaving was the right way.”_

 

She had spent many years wondering. Through all that had happened during those long years since she left, a part of her had still not been sure she had made the right choice. Sometimes, when she was spending the night in some Rabanastran or Nabradian inn, hearing the clamor of people and lively noises outside the window, it almost felt as if she could still hear the Wood’s soothing voice in her ears; it felt as if that breeze was still caressing her skin as she sat around the fire with her sisters, feeling Mjrn’s silky hair fall through her fingers as she combed it slowly and thoroughly like she had always done. She could still smell the earthy air of the Wood, and when she closed her eyes, she almost expected to see the familiar misty green foliage above the village when she opened them.

She had not expected to ever see the Wood or the village again, but their journey had called for it, and she had come along. When they encountered the barrier, she knew the cause instantly. She had known the Wood did not want her there, but it still hurt, even though she told herself she was ready for it. The Wood was her mother, and she felt abandoned, though she had no one to blame but herself. She had known she would never be allowed back did she leave, and yet she did, in search of something bigger than the world inside the Wood. She had broken the laws of the Green Word, and it had cost her dearly, and not always had it felt like what she had gained was worth the price she had paid.

When they entered the village, she had stayed behind. She had hoped to avoid meeting her sister, it was no use adding even more hurtful memories to the ones she had of her dear elder sister. She wanted to remember her by the warm memories, the joyful ones. She had gained enough painful memories from the way Jote regarded her when she told her about her intents to leave, from their disagreements and curt farewell. Yet, she was forced to face her sister anyways, and it hurt more than she had prepared for. Seeing Jote again was bittersweet, as she knew she now held as little place in Jote’s heart as she held in the Wood’s. But she did not blame her, it was the way it was and had always been, she was viera no more by the Wood and her people.

But she was not alone. He was by her side, as he had been since they met, those years ago. Short years to her, the longer for him. 

”I suppose it’s inevitable to feel like that sometimes,” he said, and she thought about the choice he had made. He had also left his home behind, and he neither had anything to return to. They had both been lost in the world, and found their way together. She had wandered for many long years, searching for her purpose alone. And she had found it in a young fledgling sky pirate.

”Balthier,” she called, and he vocalized a response to show he was listening.

”Leaving was the right choice. I know it now.” She looked over at him, sitting there next to her on the path by the village’s entrance. The others had been given accommodation in the village for the night, as a gesture of thanks for bringing back the lost Mjrn. She herself had retreated to the gateway by her own accord, and he had followed, despite not being asked to. She knew she was not wanted there, but yet in this moment, it scarcely mattered. Her companion was with her, and she was no longer lost in the vast world she had given everything to obtain.

 

 


End file.
